Kenneth Howard Tipton, Jr. was born in El Paso, Texas, in 1952. Ken's stepfather was discharged from the Air Force and moved the family to Columbia, Missouri, so he could attend the University of Missouri, "Mizzou,” on the GI Bill. At the age of 4, Ken began his lifelong journey as an entrepreneur when he realized that entertainment could generate income. Ken’s mother made a cute Tiger costume for him, complete with a tail and “Tiger Cub” across the chest in support of the Mizzou Tigers football team. On game days, Ken would sing the Tiger fight song as students walked to the stadium past his on-campus apartment, which had been a military barracks during World War II. Ken would sing his heart out as he marched back and forth, high-stepping and wielding a butterfly net handle like the drum major leading the pep club band. All kinds of coins were tossed, which Ken and his mom caught in their butterfly nets. The extra money helped supplement his family's income.
One of Ken’s earliest childhood memories at Mizzou was watching movies in a field behind his house. Every night, Ken observed the magic projector that spun stories in light and watched the student projectionist change the film reels, explaining things simply that Ken hardly understood. The student was a former Marine with a sharp, flat-top haircut. At first, he seemed frightening. But he had a soft spot for a curious little boy in tiger-striped pajamas who always brought him a paper bag of popcorn. One day, he was gone. Someone said he moved in with his girlfriend, who was into theater. She convinced him to audition for a student play called “The Winslow Boy.” He didn’t understand what that meant. All he knew was that the projector no longer flickered, and the magic had stopped.
